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8 A Book of Precious Stones
engaged
in the business of importing and dealing in precious and semi-precious
stones, as expressed in replies to letters of inquiry asking for lists
of gems classified according to their respective values and the present
demand for them. The great divergence of opinion, after-the precious
stones were set apart, was very interesting. The lists in question
were evidently prepared after careful consideration; with most of them
there went expressions of doubt as to the propriety or correctness of
the arrangement.
Following
my nomination of the five precious stones, the semi-precious stones are
divided into four classes, the arrangement within each class being
alphabetical, because there appears to be no basis upon which it would
seem justifiable to give some of these minor gems precedence over
others. A number of stones clearly only semi-precious, but which are
only occasionally seen by jewellers, are briefly covered in one chapter.
The
quintet of gems herein designated as precious stones are accepted as
such by all authorities without dissent, with the exception that the
pearl is omitted by some devoted scientific mineralogists, because it
is not an original mineral. Some writers increase the number of precious
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